Bill Hardin County Animal Shelter says will support puppy mills advances out of committee

A bill that area officials say would undo local efforts to combat puppy mills advanced out of the Kentucky Senate’s Agriculture Committee Tuesday.

State Bill 157 would permit retail pet stores to sell dogs or cats that were obtained from animal shelters and qualified breeders, which was defined in the bill as “a large-scale breeding kennel that has no direct violations indicated by United States Department of Agriculture inspection reports in the last two years or a hobby breeder.”

Elizabethtown City Council Member Julia Springsteen was among those that spoke against the bill. She and members of the Louisville Metro Council expressed concerns with the bill invalidating ordinances passed on the local level and hindering local efforts.

“E-town’s ordinance allows retail stores to partner with our county shelter and nonprofits to facilitate the adoption of animals, and also allows the county shelter and nonprofits to hold adoption events in certain places,” Springsteen said. “The only way to end puppy mills is to cut off the demand, and that is what we’ve attempted to do in Elizabethtown.”

18th District Senator Robin Webb voted in favor of advancing the bill. She said the rhetoric against the bill is a product of what she called propaganda from animal rights groups, and said bans hurt breeders of work and police dogs doing their business the right way.

“These bans do nothing but to drive it underground, to shield bad breeders, and to create foreign black markets, internet sales, and other things like that,” Webb said.

10th District Senator Matt Deneen voted against advancing the bill, stating that the bill needs some revisions.

“I do believe that there is a need for statewide governance in this area, but at this time I don’t believe the bill adds the framework that is necessary for the enforcement of the bill, and I look forward to working with the chairman on maybe establishing some of those frameworks to ensure that this does away with those puppy mills and kitten mills,” Deneen said.

The bill will now go before the full Kentucky Senate.